


Lost But Gaining Ground

by Dyce



Series: The Better Part Of Honour [2]
Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: F/M, Gen, Implied/Referenced Torture, Threats of Rape/Non-Con
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-10-01
Updated: 2014-08-18
Packaged: 2017-12-28 02:38:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Underage
Chapters: 4
Words: 16,700
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/986678
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dyce/pseuds/Dyce
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>While Zuko and Katara work their way towards the Fire Nation in 'The Better Part', Sokka, Aang and Toph search for Katara.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

 

Sokka had lost his sister.

He hadn't been able to look his dad in the eye since they came back from Ba Sing Se. It didn't matter that Toph and Aang had literally dragged him onto Appa, that he'd still been fighting his rocky restraints when they landed in Chameleon Bay. He had lost his sister, the most important person in the world, and nothing else mattered.

He'd been supposed to take care of her! Take care of Katara, that was the last thing Gran Gran had said to him (well, be nice to her, but he knew what she'd meant). Their dad had left him in charge. He should never, never have left her alone, not for one second. He'd done it just because he wanted to see Dad again, impress him, and now Katara was  _gone_.

He sat on the beach, staring blindly out at the water. Somehow he had to get back to Ba Sing Se, to find her...

Small feet scuffed the sand, and Toph sat down beside him. "Look, I had to do it," she said, and there was a thread of uncertainty under the brashness in her voice. "You wouldn't have been any good to Katara or anyone else if the Dai Lee killed you like they killed Jet."

"I know." He sighed, rubbing his hands over his face. He did know, that was the worst part. He probably could have bullied Toph and Aang into letting him go, he knew what strings to pull on both of them, but they'd been _righ_ t. It had been time for a strategic retreat. That was why he felt so guilty, why he couldn't look his dad in the eye now. "I'm not mad anymore."

She sighed quietly. "Good. You know, Sweetness is pretty tough. She'll get out of Ba Sing Se okay... and she knows where we are, right? She'll meet us here."

"I don't know if we can wait that long." Sokka frowned. "And she was meeting with the generals, and they all got caught, so she probably did too." For the first time, he didn't let himself flinch away from that thought, or lose himself in rage and guilt. Those wouldn't help Katara. He had to think, to _plan_.

"But maybe - "

"Shh." It felt like Sokka's brain was finally waking back up, like getting the use of your arm back after it had been asleep. "Thinking."

"But - "

"Shh." He put his hand over her mouth, stared out at the sea for another minute, then got up. "Come on."

He pushed into the tent where Aang, Hakoda, and some of the other warriors were gathered around the map. "I need to get back to Ba Sing Se."

"That's what I've been saying!" Aang said unhappily.

Hakoda's face was drawn and unhappy. "Sokka, we've talked about this. There aren't enough of us for a full assault. We're trying to plan a covert strike, but - "

"No, no." Sokka waved a hand. "I just need to find out the news. Don't even have to get into the city, just the port."

Everyone stared at him. "Why?" Bato asked, frowning.

"Because I need to know if Katara's been captured. If she has been, Azula will put the word out." Sokka tapped his finger on the map. "She'll want us to know."

"Why?" Hakoda frowned. "Surely she'd - "

"She knows Aang's into hostage negotiations. That's how we met her, actually. He was trying to trade a Fire Nation governor's kid for King Bumi." Sokka paced, hands moving as if to grasp the idea and hold it in front of him. "She knows he's willing to negotiate, and she knows Katara's important to him. If Azula has her, she's going to make really sure Aang hears about it."

Aang brightened. "That's true." Then he frowned. "But last time she broke the deal and attacked us."

"Yeah, and she probably plans to do it again. But she knows we'll show up for Katara anyway. She thinks we're stupid, she's made that pretty damn clear." Sokka nodded. "But she doesn't know about Dad. She doesn't know it's not just us."

"She'll be expecting either genuine negotiations or a desperate strike from the three of you," Hakoda said, and for the first time in two days he smiled. "She doesn't know you have backup."

Sokka nodded, ticking points off on his fingers. "She doesn't know we have backup. She doesn't know that Aang has the Avatar State under control. And she doesn't know that Toph has invented metalbending - have I mentioned that that's seriously badass? It is."

Toph grinned. "I _am_ seriously badass."

"Damn right you are." Sokka grinned back. "So. Someone - it doesn't have to be me - needs to go find out if she's been announcing she has a prisoner. Then we'll know what we need to plan for. Because if I was her - and she's pretty smart - she's going to have Katara on a ship."

"She's going to put your water-bending sister on a ship?" Hakoda raised his eyebrows.

"One of those big iron things, yeah. Katara can't get out of a metal cell, not even with waterbending." Sokka rubbed his chin, thinking it through. "Aang's the Avatar, and he can use all the elements, but out on open water he can't throw rocks at her - and neither can Toph. That cuts the number of elements that can get thrown at her down to two, since Aang doesn't know firebending and she doesn't know he can Avatar-up on command, and she'll think it means she only has to deal with Aang. She doesn't count me, since I'm not a bender, and she doesn't know Toph can use her own ship against her, so she'll think she's out too. Yeah. Warship. Open ocean. Where she's got the big catapults and we don't have anything but water to throw back." He came out of his reverie to find Hakoda and the warriors staring at him. "What?"

"Yeah, what?" Aang frowned. "It sounds right to me. You don't think she'd want to get away from the earth?"

"I wouldn't have thought of it." Hakoda looked at Sokka, and the open pride on his face made Sokka's throat tighten suddenly. "I would have assumed she'd fort up somewhere... but Sokka's right. The earth is her enemy, with Toph and Aang against her."

"That's why he's the idea guy," Aang said, almost cheerful again. "He always figures stuff out when we need him to."

"I try." Sokka cleared his throat, feeling his face heat up. "But we've run into Azula a couple of times now, and she always tries to get an edge on us. Tiring us out so we can't fight, or breaking hostage negotiations to attack, or dressing up as Kyoshi Warriors... she likes to hit weak points. If she can take Toph out of the fight before it starts, she has an advantage. I'm sure that's what she'll do."

Aang ferried Bato back to the port on Appa that night. When they came back with word that Azula had set sail the day before, after announcing to everyone within ten miles of Ba Sing Se that she had the Avatar's waterbender in her hold, Sokka was already deep in planning.

Azula was in for a big, big surprise.


	2. Chapter 2

Mai was starting to worry about Azula.

She'd always been a bitch, of course, ever since they were little. The kind of 'friend' who'd notice that Mai had a crush on Zuko and then use it to totally embarrass both of them. And Mai was fairly sure she'd threatened Ty Lee to get her to join.

But that was... Azula. Mai and Ty Lee had figured out a long time ago that she really didn't understand that there was something wrong with how she behaved. She didn't understand that she couldn't always have what she wanted, that she wasn't always right about everything.

And she did care about them, in her selfish way. She might pick on them for her own amusement, but if someone else did it, she'd stand up for them. Only last year, when a boy taunted Mai for being skinny and plain-faced, Azula had set his pants on fire. If he had any reproductive capabilities left, Mai would be quite surprised - and his parents hadn't dared protest when Azula loudly asserted that he'd made 'lewd comments' to Azula and her friend.

But losing her prisoner had done something to her. She was brittle and angry, snarling even at Mai and Ty Lee. Ty Lee was getting frightened, and Mai didn't like that.

"What's taking him so long?" Azula scowled, pacing up and down the portion of the deck set aside for the princess and her friends. "If Zuzu has sabotaged my plans again..."

"Do you think he let someone find out you don't have the waterbender any more?" Ty Lee asked, and then quailed under Azula's glare. "I mean... he might have messed up and let her get away or something..."

"He's certainly incompetent enough," Azula muttered, hackles lowering as she turned away from Ty Lee. "Stupid, treasonous, cowardly..."

"I think you're giving the Avatar too much credit," Mai said calmly. When Azula whipped around, Mai had her eyes fixed on the knife she was flipping idly between her fingers. "He's twelve years old, and a _monk_. I think you might be overestimating his tactical ability."

Azula frowned, tapping her chin with one manicured nail. "Well, there is that," she said thoughtfully. "I mean, he may be the Avatar, but he's not exactly a strategist, is he?"

"He didn't notice his bison was leaving a giant tufty trail. Or think to check that the 'Kyoshi Warriors' were who they said they were." Mai shrugged. "What if he's not bright enough to follow the clues you left him?"

"Oh, please. _Zuko_ followed the clues I left him. And he was barely making a living as a waiter in Ba Sing Se." Azula snorted, but she still looked thoughtful. "Still. You may be right. If he doesn't show up in a day or two, I may have to put out some more lures."

There. Azula would be much happier thinking that the Avatar was too stupid to even find the trap laid for him than worrying that she might have failed. Failure frightened Azula more than anything else. It had since they were young, since Ozai first started letting his daughter see that he favoured her over her 'failure' of an older brother.

Mai was quite relieved when she was woken, in the middle of that night, by the unmistakeable sounds of battle.

* * *

Sokka didn't know it, but he followed Zuko's lead when he crept onto Azula's ship. They'd planned carefully. Azula's ship had had only two warships as escorts... to make the trap more tempting, no doubt.

Now it had one. The stink and sink mines, adapted slightly, were very effective with a waterbending Avatar to steer them, and in the deep darkness of after midnight the other two ships didn't seem to have noticed that it had fallen behind. Only when it was almost out of sight had Hakoda and the Water Tribe warriors moved on the second escort, immobilizing it in the same way - but this time with the intention of going aboard.

While they did that, Appa had swum up to the side of Azula's ship. Toph had then climbed up the side, fingers digging into the metal as easily as if it were soft dirt, and pried open a hole in the side of the ship big enough for them to wiggle through.

"That's still pretty loud," Sokka muttered, pulling himself through the hole after a boost from Appa. "I thought I told you to keep it down."

"I _did_ keep it down." Toph had her hands on the door of what seemed to be some kind of storage room. "You can't tear metal without making some noise, Sokka. But in case you're worried, I don't think anyone heard. The closest feet on this thing are a couple of Appa-lengths away, and around two corners." She grinned widely in the dim light Aang had created by setting water aglow. "Man, metal ships are so much better than wooden ones - I can see everything."

"They smell gross." Sokka was kind of fascinated by the ships and their machinery, himself, but it seemed disloyal to like them better. "Any chance you can find Katara?"

Toph considered, running her hands over the door. "I don't know. If she's moving around, maybe... but it's hard to tell people apart when they're sleeping. Their hearts slow down and they don't make a lot of noise."

Sokka blinked. "Hearts slow down when you're sleeping? Really?"

"I know they do when you're meditating." Aang leaned over Toph's shoulder to look at the door. "That's one of the ways you know you're doing it right."

Toph shrugged. "Either one. If you ever want me to find you, make a lot of noise and move around a lot."

Sokka nodded. "I'll keep that in mind. Can you open this door?"

Toph grinned again. "Sokka, you _insult_ me."

"Can you open this door _quietly_?"

She twisted tiny fingers, and a lock clicked and the door swung open. "I repeat, Sokka, you insult me."

"I do. I'm sorry. You're awesome."

"Damn right." Toph looked oddly pleased. "Come on, let's go find Sweetness."

They hadn't gone far when shouts rang out and booted feet clattered just ahead of them. Aang dropped into a bending stance, his eyes narrowing, and Sokka rolled his eyes and shoved him and Toph into a corner. "Shhh!" He listened for a moment, then nodded. "They're headed up to the deck," he whispered. "They must have noticed that the other ship is being attacked."

"I hope Appa left the ship like you told him to," Toph whispered to Aang.

Aang nodded. "He's up in the sky now," he whispered back, giving her hand a little squeeze. "I watched him go up."

Toph sighed. "Good. After everything we went through to find him _last_ time..."

Sokka reached back to squeeze her shoulder, knowing how upset she'd been about losing Appa then. "He'll be fine. We've got the whistle. Now we just need to find Katara." He frowned. "This is a really big ship. I wonder if we could find someone who has plans on him again..."

Toph wriggled past him to tap her feet on the plates of the decking. "I don't know about plans," she whispered, pointing down a corridor, "but _that_ way there's a bunch of guys in armour who haven't moved. Think they might be guarding something?"

Sokka sighed happily. "You're the best. Seriously, I mean that. Let's go knock some Fire Nation heads."

The four guards were gathered around a heavy door and looking nervous. Well, if Sokka was guarding someone the Avatar was likely to want to rescue, he'd be kind of nervous, too. Not _really_ nervous, because he'd known Aang for a while and was pretty confident he could take the little guy down if he had to, but if he was Fire Nation he'd be so nervous he'd probably need a change of pants after every loud noise.

He whispered this to Toph and Aang, who both snickered. "Let's find out," Toph whispered. "Hey, Aang, that bucket - "

"Got it." Aang nodded. He sneaked back to grab the tin bucket they'd just passed, and tossed it around the corner with a puff of wind behind it so it bounced down the hall, clattering and jangling loudly.

One of the guards yelped. Two more summoned fire. The fourth clutched his spear in hands shaking so hard that the spear-tip was making figure-eights over his head. "What was that?"

"It's just a bucket." One of the firebenders went over to it, poking it with a toe. "You. Ping. Go see what happened."

The yelper quivered visibly. "Me?"

"Yes, you! Maybe if you stopped yelping like a little girl every time you hear a noise I wouldn't send you every time!"

"Little girl?" Toph whispered almost soundlessly by Sokka's shoulder. "I've _never_ made a noise like that."

"I have," Aang whispered. "Little monk?"

"Shh! And no bending!" Sokka hauled them back, into the shadows. Here came Ping, trembling like a sea-prune on a spoon. He'd turned the corner... he was inching down the corridor...

Sokka watched him, not even blinking. The second Ping's eyes widened, that it was certain he saw them, Sokka stepped forward, swinging his club around in a short, sharp arc. The fancy helmets the Fire Nation soldiers wore had weak points along the joins. Sokka hit one of them perfectly, and with a soft, metallic crunching noise Ping went down.

Sokka didn't check to see if he was still alive. He might be. He might not be. That had been a pretty hard blow to the vulnerable side of the skull. Sokka was pretty sure that knowing wasn't going to make him feel any better about doing it. Fire Nation soldier or not, attacking a frightened person from ambush didn't feel right.

It took a minute for the firebender who'd been giving orders to get worried. "Hey, Ping, get back here."

Sokka held the other two in place, gripping the back of each shirt. "No bending. Wait for it."

He had to give Boss Firebender credit. He didn't keep sending peons - this time, he was the one who investigated. So Sokka let Aang go, and Boss Firebender got slammed so hard into the wall by a blast of wind that he probably had broken bones. "Go!" Sokka yelled, taking off running.

There was one firebender left, but he was nervous and his first blast was aimed at Sokka's face. Classic mistake - Sokka dropped into a roll under the tongue of fire, slamming his club into the guy's knee as he came back up, and finished by ramming his club into the spearman's groin hard enough that the guy went down retching and gasping.

"Wow," Toph said, sounding mildly impressed. "You're actually not bad at that, huh?"

Sokka snorted, feeling a bit smug. "Bending's not the only way to fight, you know. Toph, restrain them and figure out who's got the keys."

The keys slammed into Sokka's face. "Found 'em!"

Sokka winced, rubbing his aching nose. "We need to discuss your attempts at throwing things. Later." He unlocked the door, peeking cautiously inside. There was a bed in the cell, with a long braid hanging over the edge and a figure under the blankets. "Katara?"

The figure sat up and smiled brightly at him. "Hi!"

"Oh, no." Sokka groaned. "Not you again."

Ty Lee pouted. "That's not a nice thing to say! I - hey!"

She launched herself at the door, but Sokka was fast enough to dodge her and - just - fast enough to slam the door in her face. He locked it, too, and swung around to grab the second firebender, who was at least still awake and currently propped against a wall with bands of metal twisted around him. "Where is my sister?!"

The second firebender was whimpering. "Don't... don't know..."

"Don't you tell him anything!" Ty Lee shouted through the tiny grilled opening in the door. "You let me out right now!"

Sokka swung around to look at her. "Seriously?"

"Well..." She sighed. "It was worth a try?"

"No. No, it really wasn't." Sokka turned back to the second firebender. "You have until I count to ten. Then I let the Avatar have you. One."

"Well - " The firebender looked past him at cute little Aang.

"Two." Sokka glared at Aang.

"Me? Oh, right!" Aang took a deep breath, looking nervous.

"Three," Sokka said, trying to sound more intimidating than Aang was managing.

Aang lifted his hands, his glow water separating into a tangle of glowy streams, air swirling violently around him.

"Oh, Agni..." the firebender whimpered.

"Four." Sokka gave him a little shake. "Talk fast." Before he noticed that Aang wasn't Avataring up and WHY WASN'T HE? Sokka really wanted to know the answer to that question!

"But the princess - "

"Who's scarier?" Toph snapped. "The princess or us?"

Sokka wasn't sure if it was insulting or just unsettling that the firebender seemed to actually need to think about that. "Five!"

"She'll throw me overboard!"

"The Avatar can do worse!"

"Six!"

"Where. Is. Katara." Aang said, sounding angry but _not_ like the Avatar. What the hell was going on with him?

"She's not on board!" the man yelled, his nerve breaking. "She was rescued the first night she was on the ship! We don't know who did it! But the princess was furious - she had the guards that night executed, and nobody was allowed to say anything! She thought the Avatar might still come if he didn't know she'd escaped!"

Sokka dropped him. He hadn't actually intended to, but every muscle in his body seemed to slacken with the shock. "She's not here? But... who took her? WHO TOOK HER?"

"I don't know! Nobody knows!" the guard wailed. "The princess - "

His voice trailed off in a gurgle as slender fingers dived in between the hanks of metal Toph had wrapped around him and rendered him limp and silent. "I told you not to say anything!" Ty Lee said, sounding oddly upset. "Do you want Azula to execute you too?"

She turned to Sokka, and Sokka punched her in the face. It was pure reflex, panic at the thought of losing Katara mingling with a warrior's ingrained reaction to having a dangerous enemy getting really close. For once, he was faster than she was - she hadn't expected that, and she went down on her ass with a thump, clutching at a blood-gushing nose. "Ow!"

"Sorry," Sokka blurted. "Uh... okay. Retreat!" He turned and bolted, dragging Toph by one elbow and trusting that Aang - no longer glowing - would keep up.

" _Sorry_?" Toph asked, small feet pattering along metal plates and grilles. "Why the hell did you _apologize_?"

Sokka felt his face heating up. "She's a girl," he muttered.

"She's the enemy! She's more dangerous than either of the others!"

"She's still a girl! You're not supposed to punch girls! I mean, you can, but _I_ shouldn't! Not without it being a proper fight!"

"Sokka, you can't take her in a proper fight!"

"I know!" He saw light at the top of some stairs and charged down the hall towards them. "But I still feel bad!"

"Really?" said a clogged but cheerful voice from far too close behind them. "That's really sweet! I mean, that you feel bad. And that you know I'm better than you are. Most boys get really weird about that."

Sokka neither looked around nor slowed down, all but throwing Toph up the stairs ahead of him and shoving Aang ahead as well. "Yeah, well, most of the girls I know can beat me up. I'm pretty much okay with it. Look, no offense, but I _will_ hit you again if I have to."

"Oh, I know!" Light footsteps were clearly audible behind him. "We're enemies, so you have to. But I just want you to know that I think you're pretty good too! I definitely respect you as an opponent!"

Sokka found himself grinning suddenly. "Thanks! I actually appreciate that!" He burst out onto the deck, and got a good look around. "Oh, fuck."

* * *

Mai saw the little earthbender pop up out of a hatch, and wondered how she'd gotten aboard - but that was a thought for another time. By the time the Avatar followed her out, two knives were already in the air.

Somehow, the blind girl swung around and _caught_ them. No, she didn't catch them... she held out her hands, feet sliding across the metal deck, and the knives swooped into her hands like tame birds. But it wasn't possible to bend metal!

Except it seemed that it was, because the girl ripped up a sheet of decking with her bare hands, twisting it around herself as Mai might wrap herself in a robe. Well. That was interesting. And it would protect her against both Mai and Ty Lee.

Mai almost parted the Water Tribe boy's hair with another knife, still calm and collected... but her calm frayed when Ty Lee bounced up after him, blood smearing her face and shirt. "Ty Lee!" She darted towards her friend, sliding easily between the soldiers converging on the Avatar.

"Oooh, he's quick as well as cute," Ty Lee said admiringly as Mai caught up to her. "Nice butt, too."

Mai spared the barbarian a quick glance. He was... okay, reasonably muscular. Their age. He could hold his own with benders, always impressive. But all the same, _ugh_. "Ty Lee, are you all right?"

"Oh, sure!" Ty Lee's bright smile was rendered gruesome by the blood smearing her lips and teeth, but it seemed sincere. "Just a bloody nose. Come on, we're missing the fun!"

Mai sighed, looking at the soldiers and gouts of flame everywhere. "It doesn't seem like much of a fight," she said, bored already. But she followed Ty Lee into the brawl, because it would be unwise to let Azula think they hadn't rushed to her side.

When fifty people tried to attack three, the three had certain advantages. Mai flitted through the combat as easily as Ty Lee, sliding around and under obstacles or blasts of flame, but the assembled soldiers (sailors? were they something different on a boat?) were having a lot more trouble. Bunched together by sheer weight of numbers, half of them couldn't actually see to attack - and they made perfect targets for the enemy.

When the little earthbender grabbed up a couple of the steel-bound water-barrels near the catapult and rolled them at the soldiers, sending a dozen of them flying, Mai actually had to suppress an approving smile. Using the enemy's numbers against them was very sensible.

Azula laughed, and it had a high, unsettling note that Mai didn't care for. "The Avatar at last," she exulted. "Zuzu and our treacherous uncle aren't here to save you this time!"

The Avatar vaulted over a blast of lightning, throwing a spray of ice shards at Azula. "They weren't saving me last time!" he said, sounding oddly indignant. "They just wanted to catch me before you did!"

"If they were _loyal_ , they would have assisted me!" Azula ducked the ice and carpeted the deck with blue flame. "But it doesn't matter - here you are, and your little friends, too!"

"But not Katara," the barbarian boy said, and Mai had to suppress another fleeting surge of approval when he neatly kicked one of the soldiers directly into Ty Lee's path, knocking them both down. She didn't care to see Ty Lee knocked down, of course, but most people didn't evade her for nearly this long. "You lost her before we even found out you'd caught her, didn't you?"

Azula's eyes narrowed. "Treachery and deceit," she spat. "They'll pay. They will. But it doesn't matter, does it? You came anyway. And now I have you."

The Avatar blasted air right into her face. "Now you're trying to get us. There's a difference. And you don't have anything we want, so we're going to go now." He pulled a little whistle out of his shirt and blew on it, though any sound was drowned by the general ruckus.

"You're just going to run away? Coward!"

The barbarian, who'd been working his way towards Mai, stopped and looked over his shoulder. " _We're_ cowards? You're the one who blasted an _old man_ and ran away like an arctic mouse when we had you cornered!"

Oh, dear. Now Azula was going to kill the barbarian and Ty Lee would be sad for days. Mai flicked a knife at him that sank into his calf. "Pay attention," she drawled - and then yelped, diving ungracefully sideways as he hurled a bent piece of metal at her. Stupid! He wasn't a bender, to be rendered harmless by shock and pain. She should have known better.

"Mai!" Ty Lee called, looking past her. "Duck!" Mai dropped flat to the deck, and something whistled over her head - all right, the bendy thing was somewhat impressive if it could get a spin like that on it.

It hit Azula's upper arm, just below the shoulder, and Mai heard bone crunch.

Well, crap.

Azula staggered, letting out an angry shriek like the cry of a messenger-hawk, but she didn't go down.

The barbarian and the earthbender weren't stupid. The second Azula was distracted, the barbarian was up and hobbling towards the rail, the earthbender behind him and covering his back even as she summoned the metal boomerang to her. Mai threw several darts - she was getting low on knives - but the earthbender's makeshift armor deflected them.

Ty Lee, much further toward the bow of the ship, saw them and leaped up onto the rail. She ran along it as lightly as if it were a broad path, with her arms and hands braced to deliver her blocking jabs and her eyes narrowed in concentration. Azula was turning towards the Avatar again with lightning sparking around the hand she could still use. "I'm supposed to bring you in alive," she hissed. "But I guess dead is better than nothing."

Mai was an excellent observer. She was quite clear on the order in which things happened after that.

The little earthbender grabbed the rail and yanked upwards, making it ripple like a wave. Ty Lee laughed, flipping forward and bouncing off the rising rail, riding the momentum in an impossibly graceful leap towards the Avatar.

Azula screamed a protest, raising her hand with lightning branching off it now.

The little earthbender was shedding her armour, the pieces hitting the few soldiers still standing with stunning force.

The Avatar leaped up into the air, his staff spreading suddenly into a glider.

Ty Lee hit the upper side of the glider with a startled shriek, spreading herself flat as if by instinct.

The barbarian and the earthbender jumped overboard

For a moment the glider swung sideways, but then the Avatar wrenched it straight, his body suspended beneath it and Ty Lee's spread on top.

They both looked down, and Ty Lee's eyes went very wide. "Azula!"

"Sorry, Ty Lee," Azula said, a little genuine regret in her voice. "But I can't let him get _away_."

She brought her hand up, a great bolt of lightning erupting from her fingertips.

And then, just as it reached them, the lightning dissipated.

The glider flipped over and over, two limp bodies dropping free of it. They'd been caught in the remnant of the blast and were clearly unconscious. Mai was already running towards the rail when the Avatar's big furry beast-thing rose from alongside the ship. It caught the Avatar in its front paws, and Mai saw the barbarian grab Ty Lee's ankle as she fell past him. Maybe there was something to Ty Lee's assertions about him after all.

So she turned, drawing herself up, and faced her end with dignity.

Azula was staring at her, eyes wide, her good hand pressed to the two bleeding slices on one side of her face. Mai's knives were very, very sharp, and even in passing they cut deep. "You attacked me," Azula whispered.

"You threw lightning at Ty Lee." Years of iron control served Mai well now. She might be afraid of Azula, but Azula would never know it. "Your oldest friend. The person who loves you most."

"She shouldn't have attacked the Avatar. I told you both he was mine." Azula looked at her bloodied fingers. "You cut my face. You _betrayed_ me!"

"You made me choose." Mai lifted her chin, her face a blank mask. "We've been friends for a long time, Azula... but Ty Lee means more to me than you do."

"You traitor. You _traitor_! How dare you defy me?" Azula screamed, and Mai could hear the real distress under her anger. She could even understand it, a little. Azula really didn't understand that loyalty should go two ways, but in her own way, she did care about Mai and Ty Lee. They were the only friends she had, after all. The only people in the world who really loved her.

Mai closed her eyes as the fireball came at her, lifting her arms to shield her face. There was pain from the fire, of course, but it was dwarfed by the pain of her body being slammed into the rail and knocked over it. The water hit her like a slap, and then closed over her head.

It was almost a relief.

* * *

Sokka grunted as Ty Lee's limp body dragged on his arm, almost dislodging him from Appa's back. "You got Aang, buddy?" he called, and Appa groaned reassuringly. Sokka was never quite sure how much the bison understood, but 'Aang' was a word he definitely knew. "Good! I've got Ty Lee, so - "

"Why have you got Ty Lee? What _is_ it with you and the bouncy girl?" Toph was lying flat on Appa's head, holding on like grim death. "What's going on?"

"Shh!" Sokka could see what was going on on the deck now. Could hear snatches of Azula's yelling. It wasn't hard to figure out why the lightning had faded out just as it reached Aang - Azula was clutching at two long gashes on her face that looked about the same size as the deep puncture in Sokka's leg.

So Azula had been willing to sacrifice her friend, and Miss Gloomy hadn't. Interesting.

Sokka shoved Ty Lee's limp body down into the dip between Appa's head and shoulders, where she was less likely to roll off. By the time Mai had tumbled into the ocean, his hands were free. "I'm crazy," he said, hooking his club into the back of Ty Lee's shirt so it wouldn't get lost. "I'm very crazy. Hey! Appa! Come back around to get me, and don't drop anyone!"

"What?" Toph shrieked. "What's going on, Sokka?! Where are you going?"

Sokka was already dropping towards the water, feet first. He hit almost where Mai had, and let himself drop as straight as possible. It was still pitch dark, and it would take a miracle for him to find her in the dark water. With his eyes closed he prayed to La and to Yue. _Please help me, just this much. Just let me go the right way. I know she's Fire Nation, but she saved Aang and her friend even though she knew what would happen to her. Also please don't let there be sharks around here because my leg is bleeding and I don't want to be eaten. I don't like being eaten, I'm pretty sure. But just help me find her and I'll get her out and maybe -_

His reaching hand tangled in wet silk.

When Sokka's head broke the water, he thought he saw a faint gleam of silver on the water's surface, like a shadow of moonlight, even though the moon was down. "Thanks, Yue," he whispered, hooking his arm under Mai's chin and paddling weakly but determinedly away from the boat full of scary people.

He'd gone a whole three feet when he was scooped up in a pair of giant bison feet and could hear Toph again. " _I'm going to kill you, Sokka! Where are you!?!_ "

There was a note of panic under her fury, and Sokka coughed and spat out seawater, feeling guilty. "I'm underneath!" he called. "It's okay! Yip yip!"


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Between NaNoWriMo and both my beta and me getting sick, we've fallen behind on the Better Part of Honour, both this series and The Better Part. So I'm sorry, but updates will be a little more irregular from now on - probably every two weeks or so, instead of every week, at least for a while. I'm sorry about that, and I'll try to catch up to my posting schedule!
> 
> Thanks as always to the lovely Bea.

 

Mai opened her eyes, mildly surprised to find herself warm and dry.

Her usually well-regulated memory failed her, after the water had closed over her head. She remembered a terrible burning in her lungs and then something closing tightly around her ankle. She remembered scrabbling hands locking around her ribs and water gushing from her mouth and nose while the wind whipped past her. She remembered deep voices and blue everywhere, and Ty Lee's frantic voice. And then she appeared to have fainted again.

And now she was warm and dry, and in a room on a Fire Nation ship. Interesting. She sat up, looking around.

"Mai!" Ty Lee pounced on her, hugging her tightly. "Oh, thank goodness! Chief Hakoda said that sometimes people get really sick if they get half drowned, but that if we kept you warm and dry you might be all right because the Avatar pulled all the water out of you so it won't make your lungs go bad and - "

Mai returned the hug, knowing nothing else would calm Ty Lee down. "I feel all right. A few burns and bruises." Her hands were bandaged and she could only hope that her raised arms and wide sleeves had kept her hair from being burned off. She was stiff and sore - deep bruising, she thought, but no sharp pain that would suggest broken bones. Her chest hurt a little when she breathed, but presumably that was the result of almost drowning. When she looked down at herself, she was wearing a simple grey tunic - and trousers, she decided, shifting her legs under her blanket. It looked like part of a Fire Nation uniform. "So we're prisoners?"

Ty Lee sat back on her heels, frowning. "I... think so," she said slowly. "I mean, the Water Tribe warriors - the Avatar found dozens of them somewhere - captured this ship, and we are locked in. But they've really been very polite so far."

Mai's eyebrows went up. "Polite?" She would stay calm for Ty Lee's sake, but she knew what the Water Tribe were supposed to do with prisoners. She was inclined to think that the bit about cannibalism was exaggerated, but the rest...

"Well, yes." Ty Lee cocked her head thoughtfully. "I haven't really talked to anyone much - after we got the water out of you and brought you in here, Chief Hakoda told me what to do to take care of you and we've been locked in since. That was this morning, really early. But they left us some food and water and gave me some dry clothes to put you in and some for me to wear too. The Avatar tried to get the water out of our clothes, but he wound up freezing mine by accident, and he couldn't get the salt out anyway - "

Mai tried not to let her relief show. "You changed my clothes?"

"Well, of course." Ty Lee blinked. "I know you wouldn't want anyone else to see you naked. I thought of maybe asking the earthbender to help, because she *is* a girl and she's blind so she can't see anything anyway, but she wasn't around."

At least nobody seemed to have laid hands on either of them yet. Small blessings - although Mai thought that if that was going to happen, she'd probably rather be unconscious at the time. "Good. Thank you, Ty Lee." She hesitated. "How... how did I get out of the water?" She remembered grasping hands, but not a face.

"Sokka pulled you out. He's the cute one." Ty Lee smiled tentatively. "I didn't see it - nobody did, because the Avatar and I were unconscious and the earthbender doesn't see anything. But when I woke up, she and the Avatar and I were all on top of the sky-bison and you and Sokka were underneath in its feet. And he was all wet, and the earthbender was really mad at him for jumping off the bison."

Mai blinked. "The... cute one. The one I put a knife in right before Azula threw lightning at you. He *jumped into the sea to rescue me*?"

"Yes, he did." Ty Lee's smile softened. "He seems nice, Mai. He didn't seem mad about you throwing a knife at him, and you know boys usually do. And he told me he was sorry for punching me in the nose, before we made it out on the deck. He felt bad about hitting a girl, even though he knows I'm better at fighting than he is. I thought that was really sweet."

"He's the enemy," Mai reminded her, but without much conviction. After all, Mai was certainly an official traitor by now, and probably Ty Lee as well, so the Fire Nation's enemies might not necessarily be theirs. Though Mai and Ty Lee were Fire Nation so they probably would be, along with the entire Fire Nation. So even if they managed to escape the barbarians... what then? "They're probably just being nice to soften us up for questioning."

"Like Azula does sometimes." Ty Lee sighed, her smile fading. "Well, maybe. But I still liked Sokka. He said when we were put in here that he respects me as a warrior. Nobody's ever called me a warrior before."

Ty Lee wasn't a warrior. She was too soft, too kind-hearted, too easily distracted. But Mai hugged her anyway. "Well, at least he's smart enough to know we're both dangerous. That's something."

Ty Lee was practicing her acrobatics and Mai was bored almost to tears when the door opened. The first person through the door was the Avatar, followed by a tall man with braids in his hair and the boy who had apparently saved Mai's life.

She watched his face, trying to figure that out. They were enemies. She'd never thought much of him, though he'd impressed her a bit in that last fight. With decent training, he'd probably be fairly good. Even working on natural talent and wielding a bone club, he'd done better than most. But she couldn't figure out why, wounded and bleeding, he'd throw himself into the sea in the pitch dark to rescue her.

They closed the door, approaching rather warily. "How are you?" the man with the braids asked, his face and voice carefully neutral. "Recovered, I take it?"

"I feel fine," Ty Lee said, looking up at him. Since her chin was on the floor and her feet were currently framing her head, she had to look up a long way. "And Mai seems okay, except for the burns and bruises."

"Good. Then perhaps you could answer some questions for us," the man said, still calm.

"And perhaps we couldn't," Mai said just as calmly.

The man frowned. "Listen, young lady, you are - "

The boy - Sokka - held up his hand. "Dad, could you let me handle this?" he said seriously.

To Mai's surprise, the man nodded after only a moment's hesitation. He stepped back, and Sokka limped forward and dropped to sit in front of them, putting himself on the same level as Mai - sitting on the bed - and a little above Ty Lee on the floor. After a moment, the Avatar plopped down beside him with a loose grace that matched Ty Lee's.

"Look, I'm going to level with you two," Sokka said, resting his elbows on his knees. "This raid didn't go well for anyone. Believe it or not, I'm sorry you got caught in the crossfire. I didn't think Azula would turn on you."

Ty Lee sat up, wrapping her arms around her knees and hugging them tightly. "Neither did I," she said in a small voice. "We've been friends since we were little."

"I'm sorry," the Avatar said, sounding sincerely regretful. "I didn't mean to catch you on my glider."

"I didn't mean to land on it," Ty Lee admitted. "I was aiming for your head."

The Avatar actually giggled. "I'm not used to anyone else being up in the air like that," he said, smiling at her. "I guess you're not either, huh?"

"No! Usually I have the space over people's heads to myself!" Ty Lee smiled back.

Sokka rolled his eyes. "Aang, this is not supposed to be a bonding moment."

"But you were - "

"I was being _polite_. There's a difference." Sokka let out a put-upon sigh, and Mai felt a tiny sliver of sympathy. "Okay. Look. We're enemies, I get that. I'm not going to start questioning you about the Fire Nation's defenses - "

"You're not?" 'Dad' asked pointedly.

"No, I'm not! And both of you shush and let me handle this!" Sokka rubbed the bridge of his nose with finger and thumb. "Look. We came onto your ship looking for my sister, Katara. She wasn't there. Do you know where she is?"

"I told you - " Ty Lee started.

Mai held up her hand, and Ty Lee hushed. Mai inched forward on the bed a bit and folded her hands in her lap, meeting Sokka's eyes. "I would like to ask you something first," she said quietly.

He nodded. "You can ask. I might not be able to answer."

Mai inclined her head. "Of course. I have two questions. Firstly, what do you plan to do with us?"

He did her the courtesy of considering the question. "We don't know," he said, spreading her hands. "We're still trying to figure that out. Some of the men want to just hand you over to the Earth Kingdom troops who are still loose, but... I said no. Under the circumstances, I don't think you'd be treated... well. Respectfully." He blushed, but his eyes were steady. "Especially since you helped Azula take Ba Sing Se."

Interesting. Maybe Ty Lee was right about him. "And we'd be treated... respectfully... as the prisoners of the Water Tribe?"

"Yes." Sokka's voice was very firm. "You will. We're not Fire Nation soldiers. We won't lower ourselves to their level."

Mai frowned. "But Fire Nation law forbids..." She trailed off. Certain hints she'd heard in Omashu, the way people had looked at them as they travelled through the Earth Kingdom...

"Yes, of course. Fire Nation law forbids," the man said grimly. "Little girl, I saw my cousins dragged aboard one of your ships, screaming, when the youngest was no older than you. They were never seen again. My wife's sister was taken, too, and others. And you people call _us_ barbarians."

Mai glanced at Ty Lee - and to her surprise, Ty Lee looked miserable but not surprised. "I heard stories," she said quietly, when she saw Mai looking at her. "When I was in the circus. About how... how Fire Nation law doesn't apply outside the Fire Nation."

Mai looked down at her hands, feeling suddenly helpless and angry and more than a little afraid. She didn't know how to handle this. She'd been trained for the intrigues of the court, not the realities of war... and even travelling with Azula, she'd been sheltered by Azula's soldiers and Azula's presence. And now here they were, at the mercy of men with every reason to hate them, to think of misusing them as a form of justice, protected by a blue-eyed boy with a knife-wound in his leg and no reason to like them.

"You won't be mistreated," Sokka said quietly. "I give you my word. We're not sure what to do with you yet, but it won't be... well. Bad. I mean, not that being a prisoner is good, but you know what I mean."

She nodded slowly. "My second question," she said, her voice not quite as steady as she would have liked, "is why you saved us. You caught Ty Lee before she fell into the water."

Ty Lee blinked. "He did?"

"He did. And then he jumped off that furry... thing... and rescued me as well. I want to know why."

Sokka looked embarrassed, blushing and rubbing the back of his neck. "Well... I didn't really think about Ty Lee. I mean, when you spend as much time flying as we do, seeing someone falling through the air... well, you grab them."

The Avatar nodded. "That's true. Falling equals grabbing. That's smart when you travel by bison."

"And me?" Mai made eye-contact with Sokka again.

He shrugged, but he didn't look away. "I saw what you did. Well... I didn't exactly see it. But I saw right after it."

Everyone stared at him. "Saw what, exactly?" Mai asked carefully.

"Azula." He raised his eyebrows. "You threw knives at her, didn't you? Nobody else could have. She was throwing lightning at Ty Lee and Aang, and then it died out before it could kill them, and when I looked at her her face was bleeding and she was yelling at you."

Ty Lee's hands were pressed over her mouth, her eyes as round as two coins. "Mai, you cut Azula's face?" she said in a muffled squeak.

"She was going to kill you to get the Avatar. Of course I - " Mai broke off with an undignified grunt as Ty Lee launched herself at her, wrapping around her like a sobbing limpet. Mai patted her back and felt her face heat up a little. "Oh, stop fussing. You didn't think I'd let her do that, did you?"

Ty Lee wailed something incoherent. Mai sighed and patted her back again.

"You saved our lives," the Avatar said, sounding awed. "Wow. I didn't see that coming."

Sokka nodded slowly. "Neither did I. But I saw Azula try to kill her right afterwards. So I went in after her. I mean, she saved your life, Aang. I couldn't let her drown just because she was only doing it to save her friend."

Mai looked at him over Ty Lee's shoulder, and _that_ she understood. If Sokka had been the one to intervene, she would have tried to protect him for Ty Lee's sake. Ty Lee was the most important person in the world to her, although she'd never mentioned it to anyone. She'd been the one to give Ty Lee money to help her escape. She'd been the one Ty Lee wrote to from the circus, and she'd written back. Mai couldn't bring herself to flee, not with nothing to go to, but she'd been glad Ty Lee was free.

She could understand that Sokka felt he'd owed her something. And he'd been the one to save Ty Lee's life. "Zuko took the waterbender."

Sokka, the Avatar and the older man all stared at her in horror, and Ty Lee gulped and went quiet. "Zuko?" Sokka repeated, as if he couldn't believe his ears. "You mean... Zuko? Stupid hair? Big scar on his face? Talks about honour all the time? Keeps trying to kidnap Aang? That Zuko?"

"That's him." Mai nodded. "He left a note for Azula, although she didn't find it for a while." Not until she'd executed the guards and made her plans to trap the Avatar. "Nobody could figure out how, but somehow he got onto the ship and got a heavily drugged waterbender and one of Azula's money caches off it again without anyone seeing a thing."

Sokka snorted. "I don't like him," he said thoughtfully, "but I will admit, he's pretty good at the kidnapping thing."

"Azula sent out her Dai Li agents, but they didn't find any signs of them beyond a stolen boat. Zuko's uncle was probably with them," Mai added, in case they were bright enough to know that the Dragon of the West might be a significant problem. No matter what Azula thought, Iroh clearly wasn't the addled old man she claimed he was, or he wouldn't have escaped so easily and completely.

"Great. Prince Angry Jerk _and_ the old guy." Sokka frowned.

"Is the old man a problem?" 'Dad' asked curiously.

"Yes. Yes, he is." Sokka was frowning. "Believe me, I saw him fight at the South Pole. He's... impressive."

"He's the Dragon of the West," Mai said simply.

The name clearly meant nothing to Sokka or the Avatar. The man behind them nearly fell over. "The _Dragon of the West_? Are you telling me that the Dragon of the West has my daughter? That my son saw him fight and is still alive?"

"Yes." Mai allowed herself a slight smile. "It is impressive."

Sokka was looking over his shoulder at his father. "You've heard of him?"

The man made a noise like a dying hippo-cow. "Have I... _yes_ , I've heard of him. He's a master strategist, a genius who came closer than anyone but Princess Azula to bringing down Ba Sing Se, and one of the most dangerous men in the Fire Nation!"

"Really?" The Avatar cocked his head in a way that reminded Mai suddenly of Ty Lee. "We've run into him a few times. He doesn't seem all that dangerous."

"Neither do you," Mai said pointedly. "Most of the time."

* * *

Sokka closed the door and leaned against it. "Zuko." He let out a sigh, closing his eyes. "Well, it could be worse."

Hakoda, whose temper had started to fray kind of noticeably, growled. "Worse? Your sister is a prisoner of the *Prince of the Fire Nation* and you think it could be worse?"

"Yes," Sokka said, and it came out kind of snappy. "It could be worse. There were the pirates she stole from - they would definitely be worse. General Fong, who buried her alive, he'd be worse. Princess Azula would be a _lot_ worse. Or the sandbenders who tried to kill us, or the Dai Lee who *brainwash* people, or that really angry panda spirit who kidnapped me into the spirit world. We've run into a lot of worse in the last half-year, Dad."

Hakoda paled, and he swallowed hard. "I see. And you think Zuko is better than all those people because...?"

Sokka rubbed his hands over his face. He'd had hardly any sleep, and his leg hurt, and he was worried about Katara. It didn't make coherent argument easy. "He's an angry jerk, but he's... honourable, in his way. He's never killed innocent people to get at us as far as I know. He captured Katara once before, and all he did was tie her up and yell at her a bit. She said he didn't really seem to know what to do with her after that."

"Really." Hakoda sounded sceptical.

Sokka laughed sourly and tried not to look at Aang's innocent little face. "Really. He's hardly older than I am, Dad, and his honour's important to him. He might keep her prisoner, but I don't think he'd... well. Do any of the things Mai and Ty Lee are worried about _us_ doing." He wasn't just trying to reassure them, either. He really didn't think Zuko would rape Katara, or torture her. He'd never touched her in a bad way, she'd been pretty clear on that when Sokka asked, and he'd had his chances.

"I'm not... uh... I'm not sure what that is," Aang said in a small voice. They both looked at him, and he fidgeted nervously. "Do they think you're going to torture them or something?"

Sokka looked at Hakoda helplessly. He'd explained a lot of unpleasant realities to Aang, but he wasn't sure he could handle this one right now.

Hakoda nodded gravely. "There are a lot of stories about the Water Tribe among the Fire Nation," he said kindly. "That we flay our enemies while they're alive and make battle flags from their skin, or cook and eat them, or drag them behind our boats for sharks to eat. It's propaganda, of course. If the Fire Nation soldiers think we're savage barbarians, they won't hesitate to fight to the death when they encounter us."

"Oh." Aang's face cleared. "Ugh. I guess I'd fight pretty hard if I thought someone was going to eat me."

"You would. Believe me, you would," Sokka said with the conviction of experience. He saw his dad staring at him, and he shook his head. "I'll tell you about the canyon crawlers sometime. Or the angry panda spirit. Or the angry swamp, or... look, it's been a long trip."

"Yes," Hakoda said, still frowning. "I'm starting to get that."

Sokka rubbed his face again and then started ticking things off on his fingers. "Okay, let's see... sleep, not enough. Leg, bandaged. Food, eaten. Prisoners, questioned and surprisingly helpful. What was next... oh, yeah." He reached out to grab Aang by the back of the shirt. "You and I need to talk before we meet up with everyone to start making plans."

"Eep!" Aang instantly looked incredibly guilty. "Uh, what could you want to talk to me about, Sokka?"

"I think you know, Avatar Aang." Sokka propelled him down the hallway, glancing over his shoulder at his dad. "We'll see you soon. More food would be great."

Hakoda nodded. "We'll break out the sea prunes."

Aang made a gagging noise. Sokka ignored it. "Sounds great. Oh, and tell Toph to join us in Aang's room, would you?"

"Sure."

"And make sure there's a guard on that door! I locked Ty Lee in last night and she was out before I had time to walk away!"

Toph wandered into Aang's room a few minutes after they got there, yawning. "You questioned the prisoners without me?" she said grumpily. "Why didn't you want the person who can tell truth from lies in there? Would I have made it too easy?"

Sokka blinked a couple of times. "Well, first, you punched me when I tried to wake you up to talk to them, and second, I forgot about the lies thing. In my defense, I'm dealing with blood-loss and not nearly enough sleep here."

Toph considered that and shrugged. "Okay. I'll come with you next time. So what's up?"

"The Avatar. Actually, the Avatar was _not_ up." Sokka folded his arms, glaring at Aang. "You told us you had the Avatar thing totally under control. So where was it last night when we were fighting? Why didn't you Avatar up and take Azula down instead of leaving me and Mai to save everyone?"

Aang drooped visibly. "I... uh..."

Sokka gritted his teeth, trying to control a sudden rush of anger. "Aang," he said carefully, "we're going to war here. If you don't have the Avatar state under control, I really, _really_ need to know that before I make more plans where our lives depend on you being able to do what you say you can do."

Aang bit his lip. "I don't have it under control," he said in a small voice. "Uh... I actually can't go into the Avatar state at all."

"WHAT?" Sokka shrieked. Toph's exclamation was almost as loud and considerably more profane. Sokka wondered where she'd learned that word... but not now! Later! "Talk! Now! Words!"

Aang talked. He explained about something called chakras and unblocking them and a lot of stuff Sokka didn't understand, but then he got to a sheepish, blushing explanation of what had happened when he tried to unlock the last chakra.

"Katara?" Sokka said, staring at him. "Seriously?"

Toph snorted. "Come on, Sokka, even you must've noticed the mountain-sized crush Twinkle Toes has on Sweetness."

"Well, a boulder's worth, maybe..." Sokka shook his head. "Okay. I am not Mister Spiritual, but I think I did actually understand that last part about letting go."

They both turned towards him. "You did?" Toph said sceptically. "Because I've heard you whine for three days over a stolen cookie."

"It was the size of my head! It was the best cookie in the world!" Sokka rubbed the bridge of his nose. "But that's not important right now. Look. Aang, I get that you have a crush on Katara - "

"I love her!" Aang said indignantly, his face going pink.

"Not as much as I do, believe me," Sokka said grimly. "She's my little sister. We've been taking care of each other ever since our mom died, and I wasn't there to protect her and it kills me that I wasn't, okay? She's been my whole world since we were kids, and nothing matters more to me than protecting her!" He looked down at his hands, a little surprised to find his fists clenched.

"Then why are you mad at me for feeling the same way? I left to _find_ her, to - "

Sokka reached out and smacked the back of his bald little head. "Because there are things that are more important than how you _feel_ about stuff! Even people! You put the whole world and all of us in danger because you cared more about rescuing Katara right then than ending the war and bringing back the balance!"

Aang stared at him, stricken. "But - "

"I love Katara. I would do anything to protect her. I nearly got killed protecting the two of you, too, in case you didn't notice!" Sokka snapped, in no mood for interruptions. "But if we all have to die to stop the war, or if we have to give up on finding Katara, then _that's what we're going to do_. Do you really not understand that? We're trying to save the whole _world_ , Aang! That matters more than one person! Even her!" His throat was tight and his voice cracked embarrassingly. "Don't you think that's what she'd say, if she was here? Do you really think she'd want you to sacrifice everything we've been working for just to save her? She'd never forgive you. Never!"

Aang gulped and rubbed his sleeve across his eyes. "You're right," he said quietly. "I'm sorry. I... I should meditate. Try to unlock the chakra... I think I can do it now."

"Well, good. You do that." Sokka kind of wanted to cry, too, but Katara wasn't here and that meant he had to hold it together and take care of the younger members of the team. That was what she would want _him_ to do, he knew that. "Want us to leave you to it?"

He nodded. "Thanks. And... don't worry about saving me any sea-prunes. You can have mine."

"If you're sure." Sokka nodded. "Toph, did you get anything to eat yet?"

"I could eat more." She followed him out of the room, and when the door closed behind them he felt a small hand fumble for his. "You're really worried about her, aren't you?"

"Of course I'm worried about her." Sokka squeezed her hand, trying to be reassuring. "But Katara's pretty tough, and she's kicked Prince Jerkface's butt before."

"Whose butt?" Toph sounded confused.

Oh, right, he hadn't told her. "Mai and Ty Lee told us that Zuko swiped Katara from Azula. I'm pretty sure they were telling the truth - Mai gave it up because I saved both their lives. Kind of an honour thing, I guess. Anyway, even if his uncle is there too, I think Katara can handle them."

Toph frowned. "Zuko... he's the guy from that time in the Earth Kingdom, right? Mr 'LEEEEEEEEAAAAVE'."

"Yeah, that's him. He was chasing us for months, we told you about that."

Toph nodded. "And the old guy who was there too, he's Zuko's uncle?"

"Yup. Why?"

"I think Katara would be okay with him," Toph said seriously. "I ran into him on the road, that time I left you guys. He made me tea and gave me some good advice. I don't think he'd treat her badly."

Sokka paused, blinking a couple of times. "He made you tea?"

"Yeah. Good tea, too."

He looked down at her. "Toph, have you ever heard of the Dragon of the West?"

"Sure. He was a Fire Nation general who besieged Ba Sing Se, he was a prince... of..." Toph trailed off. "Sokka, was the old man who made tea for me and called me a fascinating stranger the _Dragon of the West_?"

"That's what Mai said."

Toph actually leaned against the wall, mouth working silently for a moment. "I had _tea_. With the _Dragon of the West_. I think that that's actually something that could get me executed in a lot of the Earth Kingdom."

Sokka patted her shoulder. "If it helps, he's an official traitor to the Fire Nation now."

"I think it does. A little." Toph shook her head. "Wow. Anything else earth-shaking happen while I was asleep?"

Sokka considered it. "Aang and Ty Lee had a bonding moment."

Toph snorted. "Oh, that's nothing new. That sloppy goofball could have a bonding moment with a boarcupine."

Sokka grinned. "True... but I think Mai and I had one too."

She stiffened, putting a hand on his arm the way she did when she wanted to make sure of someone. "You and the bored chick?"

"Yeah. I think we have some mutual respect going. You know. As warriors." He saw Toph make a face and gave her shoulder a shove. "You wouldn't understand, Miss Best Earthbender in the World. We nonbenders who fight can respect each other's skill too, you know."

"Hey, I gave you a compliment yesterday. That's all you're getting for a while, Snoozles." Toph grinned. "Let's go get something to eat."

"I am always in favour of getting something to eat."

* * *

Mai was a little surprised by how quickly they came after she banged on the door and told the guard she wanted to talk to Sokka again. She'd assumed they'd be kept waiting, to remind them that they were prisoners awaiting their captors' pleasure, and she was in the middle of combing out Ty Lee's hair when the door opened.

The older man came in first, but he leaned against the wall by the door. It was Sokka, the Avatar, and the little Earthbender who approached them, clearly continuing a conversation from outside. "Look, it's not that I don't understand your concerns," Sokka was saying to the Avatar. "I'm just saying, they _promised_ not to try to eat Appa again. It was just a big misunderstanding! And you know I wouldn't let anyone eat Momo."

" _I_ wouldn't let anyone eat Momo," the Avatar said, stroking the little furry creature riding on his shoulder. "But they're not exactly warlike people, Sokka."

"Maybe you've forgotten the vine monster, but I haven't. They can handle themselves." Sokka flopped down on the mat beside Mai's mattress, wincing a bit as he crossed the bad leg over the good one. "Sorry we took so long, there was a meeting. Anyway, any chance you've decided to come over to the side of goodness? End the war, save the babies and innocent lemurs, bring harmony and spiritual... balanciness to the world?"

Ty Lee giggled. "Balancieness?"

"I'm a simple man. I leave the spirit stuff to Aang." Sokka jerked his thumb at the Avatar. "So. Want to join?"

"Yes," Mai said, laying down the comb and turning to face him.

They stared at her - well, the ones who could see did. The earthbender cocked her head. "Huh."

 Sokka shoved a finger into his ear and wiggled it around. It made Mai's skin crawl a little. "I'm sorry, I must be hearing things. Did you just say _yes_?"

"I did." Mai allowed herself a very slight smile. He was so amusingly off-balance.

"She meant it, too." The earthbender frowned, laying tiny hands flat on the metal deck. "What about you, Giggles?"

"Who, me?" Ty Lee cocked her head, long hair swinging against her back. "Oh, we talked it over. I agree with Mai."

"Oh.... kay." Sokka frowned, running a hand over the coarse hair tied back in a surprisingly neat tail. "Well, that's... interesting. So why, exactly? I'm just curious."

Mai shrugged. "Being in a cell is boring."

"She's not wrong," the Avatar - Aang - said with some feeling. "Being a prisoner is either really scary or super boring or both. Usually both."

"I'm aware." Sokka rubbed his chin, and then he looked Mai in the eye. The look startled her. She'd never taken him especially seriously - the goofy squeaking and babbling and flailing made it hard to. But now she saw the warrior she remembered from the fight on Azula's ship, calculating the odds. "So what's the real reason? You don't usually bother lying, and Toph will know if you do, so let's just lay our tiles on the table, shall we?"

Mai nodded. "Azula will probably be calling for our heads. Imprisonment, at the very least," she said, not looking away from that piercing blue gaze. If Toph could tell when she was lying... well, she'd choose her words carefully. "In the Fire Nation, we're traitors and criminals. Outside it, we're still Fire Nation. Our families won't shield us and we'd rather not endanger them. Azula knows all the allies we have and places we might go. We don't exactly have a lot of options."

"True. Of course, you might decide that capturing the Avatar for Azula might fix that problem."

"True. But we're both nonbenders. What could we do against the Avatar?"

"Block his bending, just for starters." Sokka shook his head, grinning suddenly. "I'm not a bender either, remember? Only benders are dumb enough to think we're not dangerous just because we can't throw rocks by wiggling our butts."

"Hey!" the earthbender protested.

"You remember what you said the first time they came after us? There's three of us and three of them, you said. Sokka doesn't count because he's not a bender, you said." He poked the girl in the side. "And _look what happened_."

"Okay, okay. Nonbenders aren't completely lame." The girl swatted at his hand. "For the record, she's being truthful as far as I can tell."

"Uh-huh." Sokka nodded. "And since you don't have any other options, you figure we'll take you?"

"We discussed it," Mai said, folding her hands in her lap and maintaining her posture despite the pain of her bruises. "We're willing to offer you a deal."

The man snorted. The teenagers gathered on the floor ignored him. "What kind of deal?" the earthbender asked suspiciously.

"You give us... refuge. Protection." Mai met Sokka's eyes again. "Not just as prisoners, but as allies. In return, we'll give you something you want."

"Really? Because you don't know where Katara is and you can't teach Aang firebending, so what exactly do you have that you think we want?"

Mai contained her nervousness. She was wagering a lot on this. "The Kyoshi Warriors."

Sokka went still. "What about them?"

"We captured them. That's how we got their uniforms and equipment." Mai tilted her head very slightly. "You mentioned being... with Suki, Ty Lee says. And Suki was the name of the leader of the Kyoshi Warriors. The Warriors who you trusted with the Earth King."

Blue eyes hardened like chips of ice. " _Was_ the name?"

Mai shrugged slightly. "Don't worry. She's still alive, as far as I know. They were taken prisoner, all of them. Trophies for the Fire Lord... he does so enjoy imprisoning new and interesting people, or so Azula believes. We know where they were taken, and we can help you get them back."

Sokka didn't look away from Mai. "Toph?"

"Truth. She's nervous," the little earthbender added thoughtfully. "She's not showing it, but she's nervous. Not lying, though."

"And she's right about not having anywhere else to go." Sokka's mouth tightened, and he looked grim and suddenly older. "We can't leave Suki and the Kyoshi Warriors in jail. They'd still be safe on their island if it wasn't for us."

"And Suki did save me from drowning," 'Toph' said, cracking her knuckles. "I owe her for that. Let's go bust open a Fire Nation prison."

"We're supposed to look for Katara." The Avatar frowned, then shook his head. "But you're right. We owe the Kyoshi Warriors something, too. We'll get them out. We have some time before - " He stopped a little too hastily. "Well, before we have to meet up with - "

"Before the invasion. On the Day of Black Sun." Mai kept her voice calm and uninflected, but she smiled again at the obvious chagrin on their faces. "King Kuei is a chatty guy. You may have noticed."

Sokka slammed his head into the heel of his hand. Once. Twice. Three times. "Just once," he groaned. "Just once I would like for things to go well. Okay. Tell us what you know."

"Do we have a deal?"

"Yes, we have a deal! I will build an igloo for you and catch fish for you with my own nonbending hands!" Sokka growled, then shook his head. "Well, okay. Now that we know the last day and a half of planning has been a _complete waste of time_... tell us how much you know. About Suki, and about the Day of Black Sun."

 


	4. Chapter 4

"Sokka, get me a drink of water." Toph's voice was weak and thready.

Sokka felt even worse than she sounded, but he groaned and forced himself up onto hands and knees. He took the empty waterskin and crawled over to the spring to fill it. "Next time you can get your own."

"You nearly killed us all," Toph said, flopping back and snuggling into Appa's fur. "You'll get us water and like it."

"I didn't nearly kill us all!" Sokka protested, but half-heartedly. He... sort of had.

A bit.

It hadn't really sunk in until they set out to rescue Suki that not only was Katara missing, she was  _not there_. Which meant that someone else had to cook.

Sokka could prepare for cooking with the best of them. He could skin and gut anything made of meat, knew which organs were good to eat and which weren't, and could build a campfire like a champion. He could even roast meat over a fire. But Aang couldn't eat meat, and even Toph complained after a day or two of nothing else.

On the first day, Aang had found a stand of fruit trees and they'd had fruit and meat.

On the second day, Aang had boiled rice that had somehow turned out both crunchy and burned. Mai had had some pithy comments to make about torturing prisoners. (Some of them had actually been rather clever.)

So on the third day, Sokka had taken the bison by the horns and tried cooking. They'd found some eggs, and Sokka had mixed them with some flour and spices and shredded seaweed from the supplies Dad had given them. That had produced a strange but not inedible sort of pancake, and after making a few for Aang, Sokka had thrown some smoked fish into the rest of it to give it flavour. He'd actually been rather proud of the result... for about an hour.

The next twelve hours were mercifully hazy. The eggs had *seemed* all right, but at least one obviously hadn't been... or maybe it had been the seaweed? Whatever had caused it, they'd all spent miserable hours each crouching behind a different tree, stomachs purging the poison from both available orifices. Aang was the only one who at some point hadn't sworn to murder Sokka, and he would have been seriously worried about Mai if the noises from behind her tree hadn't been so utterly wretched that he was pretty sure she couldn't stand.

Sokka never wanted to have both vomiting and diarrhoea in the woods ever again. It wasn't just miserable, it was incredibly undignified.

It was now the afternoon of their fourth day, and Aang - who'd recovered the fastest - had lurched away to collect some fruit. Mai, Ty Lee and Toph were all draped over Appa, still looking miserable. Sokka felt just as bad, but in the interests of not being murdered by three of the most dangerous young ladies he'd ever met, he dragged himself back to Appa and passed Toph the water skin. "Here. Water."

"I hate you," she said conversationally, and took a long drink before passing the water up to Ty Lee.

"I hate you too," Ty Lee said, her voice weak, and lifted the waterskin to her lips. "I mean, I know you didn't do it on purpose, but... uuuugggghhh."

"As soon as I can stand up without swaying, I'm using you for target practice," Mai said, taking the water as it was passed on. "I don't care if it was deliberate or not."

"Hey, I suffered too." Sokka flopped gratefully onto Appa's soft, cosy tail. "I ate six of those lousy things."

"That's true," Toph said thoughtfully. "You did suffer. _Good_."

"From now on," Ty Lee said, rolling onto her stomach and moaning softly, "I do the cooking."

There was a long silence. Mai eventually spoke for all of them. "Can you cook?"

"A few things?" Ty Lee rested her chin on her folded arms. "Not a lot, but I helped a few times in the circus. I can boil rice, and I'm good at beans. I've never made anyone sick."

Sokka managed to muster a brief spark of indignation. "You told me you couldn't cook! You both did!"

"No, we didn't." Mai glared down at him. "We said we  _don't_ cook. Or do laundry. As it happens, I don't know how to do either. I mean, I assume you put dirty clothes in water with soap or something, but I'm certainly not washing  _your_ clothes."

Sokka glared right back. "Why not?"

"Because you stink. You smell like you haven't bathed in weeks. I'm not touching anything of yours. Ever." Mai flopped back onto her back, glaring up at the sky. "So don't get your hopes up."

Sokka wasn't sure what she meant by that, so he ignored it. "Hey! I had a bath less than a week ago! Soap and everything!"

There was, once again, a long silence.

"Tell me he's joking," Mai said, no longer deadpan but sounding actively horrified.

"Nope." Toph snickered. "We were going to see the King. Katara made everyone take a bath first."

"Katara... *made* him take a bath before seeing the king?" Ty Lee sounded horrified too. "You mean he wouldn't have if she hadn't made him?"

"Well, he'd just had one a couple of days before that, so probably not." Toph shrugged. "I wasn't going to, either, but that was an intentional act of rebellion. I  _choose_ not to bathe because I am not a fragile fucking flower of the fucking nobility any more and they can't make me."

"Well, at least you have some sort of reason," Mai said after a minute. "I suppose you're young enough that you don't smell too bad."

"Never underestimate the power of a good sand-bath to keep you fresh," Toph said seriously if incomprehensibly.

"All... right. But are you seriously telling me he doesn't bathe more than once a week? Really?"

Toph considered it. "Well... he swims, if we happen across some open water. He's not much of a believer in soap, though."

Mai shuddered. "That's horrifying."

Sokka glared up at them. "I'm right here, you know."

"We know. We can smell you."

"Hey, after the last couple of days, none of us smell great, okay?" Sokka scowled. "Which was not my fault! If Ty Lee had admitted she could cook - "

"I didn't realize you really couldn't do it at all!" Ty Lee protested. "I mean, didn't any of you even help Katara do it?"

Toph waved her hand theatrically in front of her face. "Katara said I wasn't allowed anywhere near fires or sharp knives."

Mai and Ty Lee both looked down at Sokka, who squirmed. "I did the hunting," he said defensively. "We had a deal. Aang and I collect the food, Katara cooks the food." They kept staring at him. "I roasted that stripy pig thing, didn't I?"

"Uh-huh. What else did Katara do?" Mai asked dryly.

Sokka thought about it. "Well, she did the laundry. And the cooking. And she handled the money most of the time. And she trained Aang."

"She was the mom," Toph said simply, and some of the usual bravado had leached out of her voice. "She did the... taking care of stuff. Sokka did hunting and being funny, Aang did being the Avatar, I did the awesome earthbending, and Katara did... everything else."

"I see." Mai shook her head. "Well, I can handle money. And Ty Lee can cook at least a little. But we definitely don't do mothering."

Sokka leaned back against Appa's tail, his throat suddenly tight. Hearing Toph say that... _she was the mom_... brought so much back. Katara sewing. Katara cooking. Katara stroking his hair, when they were little and Mom had just died, and telling him it would be okay. He hadn't known what to do then, but she had. Now she was gone and he had to figure out what to do, how to take care of Aang and Toph - the kids - and do what Katara would want him to do.

He wasn't sure he knew how.

* * *

Mai's arms and legs felt like her own again, though she was still weaker than she had been. She'd put the few knives she had left through Sokka's clothes on principle, but she'd barely nicked him. After all, he hadn't meant to poison them, and had suffered as badly as anyone.

She couldn't make heads or tails of him. He might be appealing enough, clean and appropriately dressed, but she didn't share Ty Lee's enthusiastic appreciation. She'd wondered... well, he was a boy, wasn't he? Everyone knew that boys, especially in their teens, were slavering masses of hormones barely held in check by the rules of polite conduct, who would ravish a girl as soon as look at her.

But Sokka clearly had no interest in ravishing. He'd rejected Ty Lee's first attempts at flirting, and after that had treated them as if... well, as if they were boys themselves! Or little girls like Toph! It puzzled Mai. She'd never spent any time alone, or even mostly alone, with boys before. She hadn't really cared to, and with Azula and Ty Lee around they generally didn't bother with plain, gloomy Mai.

Which was good, of course. She didn't want them to. Her fleeting crush on Zuko aside - and she would have liked to see him again - she'd never found a boy who was even remotely interesting.

Sokka was sitting a little way away from the fire, going through his maps again. Ty Lee was cooking, with Aang's assistance - he'd seemed quite keen to help after Ty Lee started juggling apples - and Toph had put up earth shelters for everyone and was now picking the dirt out of her toes with apparent enjoyment. Ugh. Little kids were so gross. Mai had never been like that. Her mother would never have permitted it.

She went over to kneel beside Sokka, skirts tucked demurely under her legs, hands folding automatically in her lap. "Are you going over the plan again?"

"I still don't like it." He frowned down at the map. "Are you sure they're still there?"

Mai sighed. "No," she said patiently. "And that's the sixth time you've asked me that. But we should have a few days before they were scheduled to leave. Just like I told you the last six times."

He sighed. "Sorry. But I still don't like it."

"You mentioned that. Eight times so far."

"You have an unnatural obsession with counting," he muttered, resting his chin on his hand. "Look, it's not that I don't like you, okay? You and Ty Lee actually, you know, fit in okay. Better than I thought. But I'm putting a lot of trust in you here."

Mai nodded. She couldn't blame him for being wary. She wasn't sure she'd have gone along with the plan, in his shoes. "At least I didn't suggest taking the Avatar into the prison."

"No. That's actually one of the major reasons I'm going along with this." Sokka tapped the map she'd sketched out with charcoal on the back of another map. "If you were planning to get us caught, you'd have wanted to keep Aang close to get yourself out of trouble. But you didn't. You actually made a pretty good point."

Mai felt slightly pleased by that. It was... nice... to have someone actually want her input on a plan. And while she could pass for an adult easily, and Sokka and Ty Lee would pass for young soldiers in the right uniforms, she had pointed out that there was no disguise that could make either Aang or Toph look like adults. Nor was there any valid reason for children to be entering a Fire Nation prison.

So they would wait outside. Toph, who was surprisingly competent for someone so young, would 'listen' for the prearranged signal, then simply open up the stone buildings like an eggshell, with Aang's help. It would be Mai, Ty Lee and Sokka who actually went inside the prison, taking the risk of capture to find the Kyoshi Warriors... and Sokka's girlfriend.

She glanced sideways at him. "I can't help wondering," she said, careful not to sound especially interested, "how you even met a Kyoshi Warrior, let alone got... involved with one."

Sokka was tracing their intended route with one finger, frowning. "Oh, I said I didn't think girls could be warriors and she beat me up," he said absently. "Listen, is there an armoury in this place? I think we should hit an armoury if we can. You're kind of under-armed."

"There'll be an armoury, but it'll be fairly basic." Mai actually frowned, heedless of the wrinkles it would no doubt cause. "Wait... you did what?"

When she looked at him, Sokka was actually blushing. "Well, I... uh... I had some kind of stupid ideas about girls not being able to fight," he admitted sheepishly. "I'd never left my village, and the only girl anywhere close to my age was my sister, and... look, I know it was stupid now. Believe me, it didn't take me long to learn that. Suki only had to beat me up in public twice before I got the message."

That was the first thing he'd said that  _did_ fit with what she'd been taught about the Water Tribe. Their women weren't allowed to fight, but were married off in their early teens and restricted to their tents and their children. Everyone knew that. "Really."

"Yes, really." He shrugged, looking at her. "Look, I may be a Water Tribe peasant, but I'm not actually an idiot. If a bunch of pretty girls in dresses can beat the snot out of me without smudging their makeup, then obviously they're better at fighting than me. They actually taught me a lot, once I admitted I needed it." He grinned suddenly. "They made me follow their traditions, though. The makeup isn't so bad, but those dresses are kind of restrictive, aren't they?"

Mai stared at him, as stunned as if he'd started reciting poetry. "Well... yes, actually. Those heavy layers - you actually wore one of their uniforms?"

He chuckled. "I not only wore one of their uniforms, I actually passed for a girl when Zuko and his troops attacked. Not, you know, on purpose, but they didn't notice I was a guy under the dress and the makeup. That did my ego a whole lot of good, I have to say." He sighed and shook his head. "Anyway. Suki and I met up on our way to Ba Sing Se, a little while before she met you, and... well. She missed me, I guess. And I missed her. So we're... kind of together now, even though we haven't been able to spend a lot of time together." He got a dreamy look on his face. "She's just so... deadly."

Mai glanced sidelong at him. Okay. Maybe Ty Lee wasn't entirely wrong about him being attractive. But his explanation begged at least one question. "So you're about to break into a Fire Nation prison, putting your life in the hands of two girls who were your enemies a week ago, to rescue a girl you've spent... what, a week with?"

  
"Uh... about three days, actually. But so what?" Sokka frowned at her. "Suki means a lot to me, okay? And even if she didn't, she's here in the Earth Kingdom because of me. She'd still be safe on Kyoshi Island if we hadn't convinced her to get involved in the war. So we owe it to her to rescue her."

Mai blinked, and then inclined her head slightly. "I can't argue with that," she said quietly. "All right. And if you're worried, remember that I cut Princess Azula's face open and I'm probably a lot more wanted than you are. And  _I_ won't be wearing a helmet that hides my face."

Sokka considered that. "You know, that does make me feel better. Okay. So let's go over uniform acquisition again..."

* * *

Sokka's hands were sweating. The halberd was a weapon he didn't really know how to use, the stupid helmet blocked out all his peripheral vision, and they were more than a little surrounded.

"You appear reluctant to permit my inspection," Mai said, her voice hard and cold. Behind her elegant mask of makeup, she really did look and sound older than she was. "If I find that you or your men have interfered with these prisoners in any way, standard penalties  _will_ be enacted, I assure you."

The commander of the small garrison looked very nervous. "No, no!" he said hastily. "Not at all, Lady Fang! The Princess's prisoners have been most carefully guarded, I assure you. But my orders - "

"Your orders were to allow no one but Princess Azula, one of her own aides, or the agents of the Fire Lord himself access to the prisoners," Mai said dryly. "In those precise words. Is that not so?"

"Well, yes, but - "

"And I am one of Princess Azula's aides, am I not?" She held out the carved soapstone disc that was only one of the many items Mai had had secreted in her layers of clothing when she was captured. 

"That... that is certainly her sign, but - "

"Then you will allow me to inspect the prisoners. Now." Mai drew herself up, glaring at the man. "I have not suggested removing them, Commander. I merely wish to inspect them. Surely you and your... men," she added, disdain practically dripping from her as she looked at the rather slovenly troops gathered behind the commander, "can prevent one noblewoman and her  _two_ personal guards from absconding with two dozen prisoners, if that is your concern."

Sokka grinned behind his skull-mask as the commander went purple with embarrassment and started barking orders. Mai's ability to be unbelievably, snottily irritating was much more endearing when it was being used for their benefit. And the way she just assumed people should do what she told them - that really seemed to work for her. He wondered if he could make it work for him, too.

After only a couple of minutes, 'Lady Fang' and her guards were being escorted into the dungeons by several very nervous soldiers. They were at least two levels underground, and Sokka would have been worried if it had been anyone but Toph standing ready to get them out. But he'd seen her crack open deeper holes than this - and she'd been pretty pissed when she found out that the Fire Nation was using a captured Earth Kingdom fort. What an earthbender had made, she'd said, she could tear down even faster than regular earth and stone, and she could trace the alterations underground, too. 

"Here it is." One of the soldiers opened a heavy door and waved two of his men inside before bowing politely to 'Lady Fang'. "The prisoners are all chained, my lady, so you may enter without fear."

Sokka gripped his halberd so hard that his knuckles whitened when he followed Mai into the large communal dungeon. The prisoners *were* chained, each attached to the wall by a length of chain that was locked to a heavy metal collar around her neck. Not even wrist or ankle, but around their  _necks_ , as if they were leashed dogs. They were all thin, all pale, all crouching on cold stone with no more protection than a thin tunic and pants. From the smell, they hadn't even been allowed the dignity of a bucket to use as a privy...

Mai's shoulders stiffened even further. "I want an  _explanation_ ," she snarled, rounding on the hapless soldier like a thin, elegant tiger. "Why are the Princess's valued prisoners being treated as if they are common criminals? How dare you defy her in this way?"

Under cover of her raised voice, Sokka began to drum the iron-covered butt of his halberd on the stone. Tap. Tap. Tap-tap. Tap-tap. Tap. Ty Lee joined in, and he could see how tightly she was gripping her own weapon. Their drumming wasn't loud. It didn't have to be. Not when the very stone would carry it to Toph's sensitive ears.

In less than two minutes, as far as Sokka could judge, a terrible rumbling, grinding noise echoed down the hallway, and the floor jumped beneath their feet. "What's that?" one of the soldiers shouted.

"Earthbenders!" another yelled, further down the hall. "We're under attack!"

Ty Lee promptly accounted for two of the three soldiers inside the cell, one with the butt of her halberd, the other with a jab of her fingers into the side of his neck under the helmet. They both dropped, one groaning, one silent. Trusting Mai to handle the one she'd been shouting at, Sokka yanked off his helmet and headed straight for Suki.

She braced herself as if she thought he was attacking, and then her eyes went wide. "Sokka?"

He dropped his halberd and went to his knees beside her, holding her tightly. "Hi," he said, knowing it sounded stupid. "I came as soon as I could."

Suki held him back just as tight, her voice trembling only a little. "I knew you'd come." Then she looked over his shoulder and pulled back. "Wait, they're the ones who - "

"The ones who captured you, yes." With a calculating look in her eyes, Mai swung Sokka's discarded halberd at the chain connecting a Kyoshi Warrior - Eba, Sokka thought her name was - to the wall. The honed steel broke through heavy iron almost easily. "And now we're rescuing you. Blame Sokka."

Suki looked up at him, joy clouded with sudden suspicion. "Why are... Sokka, why are you working with them?"

"I rescued them from Azula and now they owe me one. Also, they've agreed to join the Avatar because Azula's scary and crazy and tried to kill Ty Lee. Trying to murder your allies is a bad move. You know. Long-term."

"Yeah." Ty Lee grunted as her halberd raised sparks on another chain. "She threw lightning at me. On  _purpose_. And Sokka was really nice and didn't let me or Mai drown and let me tell you, the Water Tribe treats prisoners way better than this. So we joined up when they promised to protect us from Azula."

"Seriously?" Eba didn't sound convinced.

Sokka shrugged, eyes still on Suki. "I don't know if you remember this, but I can be pretty persuasive when I try."

Suki laughed a little, and braced her own chain for Mai's swinging halberd. "I remember. And... thank you."

They'd only broken about half the chains when a raging Avatar and a very angry Earthbending Master ripped the fort in half from top to bottom, opening it up like a book. While Aang held the remaining soldiers at bay, Toph earth-slid down into the dungeon and made short work of the rest of the chains before lifting the whole dungeon floor up and carrying it off.

She didn't stop until she was too tired to continue, Aang closing up the earth behind them to hide the most obvious signs of their passage. When the stone floor slid to a drunken halt in the middle of a clearing, Sokka stood up and looked around. It was a good spot. A stream that looked clean. Trees for a bit of cover. There might even, once the rumbling had stopped, be some game. And they'd planned ahead, food-wise, if Aang or Toph had remembered to bring the cache along... "Okay, ladies. There's water here, if you want to wash up, and we have some food." He paused. "I really, really hope one of you can cook."

"Most of us." Suki got up, too, a little shakily. "Why doesn't it surprise me that you can't?"

Sokka considered that. "Because you know me?"

She laughed, though there were tears in her eyes. "Yeah. That must be it." And then she kissed him, and Sokka slightly lost track of everything else for a minute or five.

Some time later, comfortably stuffed with roast pork, rice, wild greens and some dried fruit Toph had liberated from the Fire Nation troops, Sokka tucked his arm closer around Suki's shoulders. "So that's how things stand," he finished. "We don't know where Katara is, but she can handle Zuko and the old guy. Seen her do it. And the Fire Lord knows about our plans for the Day of Black Sun, but he might not know that we know. I mean, we don't know if Azula knows I rescued Mai and Ty Lee. She didn't see it, but someone else might have and told her. So now we're back to nobody knowing exactly what anyone else knows, which is better than Azula knowing everything and us not knowing that she knows, right?"

Suki chuckled quietly. "Right. I think."

Sokka squeezed gently. "Anyway. We'll meet up with my dad tomorrow. They've captured a Fire Nation ship, so there'll be plenty of room for you and the girls, and... well, I didn't want to make plans for you. If you want to go home, nobody could blame you after what those bastards put you through. If you want some revenge... we can probably arrange that."

" _I_ vote revenge," Noriko said grimly, from across the fire. The other Kyoshi Warriors growled agreement - most of them, anyway. Their captors had, according to Suki, stopped short of rape or torture, but that didn't mean they'd been kind.

Suki nodded. "I want to help you bring down the Fire Lord," she said quietly. "I think we all do."

"I don't blame you." Ty Lee was washing rice for tomorrow's breakfast. "I mean, I  _am_ Fire Nation, and even I want to help. Aang's right. The war... it's wrong. And it's hurting everyone, even the Fire Nation." For once, she didn't sound silly or giggly, and her eyes were sad. "Fire Lord Ozai is an awful man. He should be stopped."

"Uh-huh. That's convincing," Eba muttered.

"It's true." Mai was cleaning her knives, composed and impassive as ever. But she looked up and met Eba's eyes, and there was something in her face that made Sokka think she was truly angry under the mask. "We never knew what happened," she said, her voice hard. "But Azula was our friend. She was always... selfish, sometimes mean, but she wasn't always a monster. But she changed when the Fire Lord found out she was a gifted firebender and she was suddenly his favourite. She got worse after her mother disappeared. Now she'd rather kill Ty Lee, the person who cares most about her, than let him think she's failed."

"We don't know what Ozai did," Ty Lee said softly. "She would never tell us. But we know it was him. The more time she spent with him, the more she started to talk about 'Father says' and do... do mean things. I think we're the only ones who even remember that she wasn't always like that, now."

Nobody spoke for a long moment. Sokka suspected that they were all - like him - thinking what Ozai might have done to change Azula so much and then trying really hard _not_ to think about it. Because that was... ugh.

"That's why you were still loyal to her," Toph said very quietly. "Because you remember."

Ty Lee nodded. "We still love her," she said simply. "And I think she still cares about us, in her way. But she's scary now. And... and unbalanced. If we stayed with her, I think she would have killed us sooner or later."

"She certainly tried." Aang reached out to rest his hand gently on Ty Lee's shoulder. "But I promise I'll remember that," he said seriously. "That Azula is... isn't well. I'll try not to hurt her if I can."

Ty Lee smiled at him. "Thank you. That means a lot. I'm sure that if Ozai was gone, if she got some help... well. She might get better."

 


End file.
